Do you think The Good Life could be remade, with me or Dave playing Tom Good (maybe not!)? If you have seen something on TV or heard something on the radio recently that you want to talk about, tell us here.

Did anybody see the slim-line HFW on tonights prog? Is this connected to his meat free vegie series and had the doctor given him a lose weight or else lecture..........or am I barking up the wrong conclusion Just a coincidence perhaps but makes me wonder.

bonniethomas06 wrote: It is true that when cooking veggie you are forced to be more inventive with veg.

Unfortunately not Bonnie, although I wish it were. I'm not convinced it even makes you eat more veg, no matter how creatively prepared!

Many of the vegetarians, and indeed vegans, that I know eat just as much processed and junk food as omnivores. Before my gal moved up here she was flat broke and more or less lived on A$da's instant noodles for 9p a packet - no wonder she was so ill when we finally fetched her!

Since "coming home" she's lost 3 stone and is much healthier, mentally and physically. But she still has an unhealthy liking for veggie burgers and sausages!

Maggie

Never doubt that you can change history. You already have. Marge Piercy

Don't tar us all with the same brush GA, whilst there are some veggies who live off processed crap and meat alternatives, I'd say the majority eat very well indeed. I've been veggie for over 30-years and I'm pretty sure it's made me more inventive in the kitchen (compared with my siblings who have a limited range of meat and two veg dishes) . Like many veggies, I too went through the teenage 'not very sensible diet'. But you soon learn you that can't live off stir-fry and beans-on-toast and so become more adventurous, learning how to cook tasty meals to suit any mood or occasion.

No, no - I did say many not all. I fear it may be more of a generational thing than a diet preference. I know so many people of my generation and beyond who just don't cook anything from fresh and rely on processed meals and many of my daughters friends are children of non-cookers. I do find some of their holier-than-thou attitudes to my eating meat rather grating when I know the vast majority of their food comes out of a packet!

Maggie

Never doubt that you can change history. You already have. Marge Piercy

contadina wrote:... But you soon learn you that can't live off stir-fry and beans-on-toast and so become more adventurous, learning how to cook tasty meals to suit any mood or occasion.

But you CAN live off:

Porridge, marmite on toast, apples, oranges, baked beans and cheap tinned plum tomatoes. I did. For about two years. It was cheap.

I was a veggie for five years in my teens / early twenties and I confess I found it very hard to be imaginative with vegetarian ingredients. Food became very dull. I confess that this had a lot to do with my re-starting a diet that included some meat.

Yep - can't see much wrong with that. Adding banana sandwiches, though, would make it luxurious. Oh - and reasonable bread to dunk the tomatoes. Heaven!!!!!!!!

Mike

EDIT: Bloody wufta students of today!!! They've never had it so good

You know, I'm sure bananas were bloody expensive when I was younger (1980s I'm thinking), yet now they're as cheap as chips.

I always made sure I had enough money for good bakery bread and good coffee. Didn't really care too much about anything else. We made our own booze from any old fruit (and I think I am far away from those times to admit that we made good use of our scientific training to build a very fine still for vodka - the martinis! ). We had no heating, mind, which I would have liked.

bonniethomas06 wrote:
What a hero... I really like this veggie series, although not sure that eating pomegranites, lemongrass and all manner of tropical veg is any more ethical than eating locally grown meat?

I thought that as well. I always tended to find veggie recipes that centred on non-local produce/ other countries' cuisines though (my error I'm sure) so I'm hoping for lots of boring British veg in this series!